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No. 205 Squadron RAF
No. 205 Squadron badge
Active	Royal Naval Air Service 2 August 1915 – October 1915 31 December 1916 – 1 April 1918 Royal Air Force 1 April 1918 – 22 January 1920 15 April 1920 – 1 April 1923 8 January 1929 – 31 March 1942 23 July 1942 – 31 October 1971
Country	United Kingdom
Branch	Royal Air Force
Type	Flying squadron
Role	Maritime Reconnaissance
Motto(s)	Malay: Pertama di Malaya ("First in Malaya")
Commanders
Notable commanders	H M Cave-Browne-Cave
Insignia
Squadron Badge heraldry	A kris and a trident in saltire The badge points to two aspects of the squadron's history, the trident referring to its RNAS origins and the kris to its association with Malaya
Squadron Codes	KM (Apr 1939 – Sep 1939 Allocated, no confirmation of use) FV (Sep 1939 – Mar 1942)

No. 205 Squadron was a Royal Air Force unit formed on 1 April 1918. Prior to this it had existed as No. 5 Squadron of the Royal Naval Air Service (RNAS). In 1929, it became the first RAF squadron to be permanently based in Singapore, taking as its motto Pertama di Malaya ("First in Malaya"). No. 205 Squadron operated during the Second World War and the Cold War before disbanding on 31 October 1971.

History

Formation and World War I

No. 5 Squadron of the Royal Naval Air Service was formed at Dover on 2 August 1915 from elements of No. 4 Squadron RNAS, which had relocated to Eastchurch. However, in October 1915, No. 5 Squadron ceased to exist as it was absorbed into RNAS Dover.

On 31 December 1916, 'B' Squadron of No. 5 (Naval) Wing was redesignated No. 5 (Naval) Squadron. It operated Sopwith 1½ Strutters, making bombing raids on Belgian ports and German airfields. In August 1917, the squadron was equipped with DH.4s. No. 5 (Naval) Squadron was attached to 5th Brigade of the Royal Flying Corps in February 1918. On 1 April 1918, at Bois de Roche, France (some sources say Petite-Synthe), it transferred to the Royal Air Force and was redesignated No. 205 Squadron RAF. No. 205 Squadron's operations continued with raids against ports and attacks on German airfields until the end of the war. In September 1918, it was re-equipped with DH.9As.

It produced at least three notable aces, in Euan Dickson Charles Bartlett, and Walter Naylor.

Between the wars

The squadron relocated to La Louveterie in Belgium following the end of hostilities before moving to Hucknall Airfield in March 1919, where it was first reduced to cadre status and disbanded on 22 January 1920.

Reformed at RAF Leuchars on 15 April 1920, the squadron operated as a fighter-reconnaissance unit with Parnall Panthers. It was disbanded on 1 April 1923, after being redesignated to No. 441 Flight. The squadron was reformed when the RAF's Far East Flight was redesignated No. 205 Squadron on 8 January 1929, becoming the Air Force's first squadron to be permanently based at Singapore. It carried out survey flights with Supermarine Southamptons, re-equipping with Short Singapores in April 1935. From 1929 to 1930, the squadron commander was Group Captain H M Cave-Browne-Cave. Cave-Browne-Cave had previously been Officer Commanding the Far East Flight.

World War II

At the outbreak of World War II, No. 205 Squadron flew patrols over the approaches to Singapore and the Indian Ocean, employing bases in Ceylon and the Nicobar Islands as outstations. It was re-equipped with PBY Catalinas in 1941 before being withdrawn from Singapore and relocated to Java, leaving three aircraft at Selatar Air Base. One of 205 Squadron's Catalinas became the first Allied casualties of the war with Japan. According to Japanese reports found after the war Flying Officer Edwin Beddell's Catalina had spotted the Japanese invasion fleet approaching Northern Malaya when he was attacked by a catapult-launched float plane which must have damaged his radio. A short time later Beddell's plane was attacked by five Ki-27 which shot him down. The Japanese report states the Catalina exploded 400 feet above the sea. When Japanese forces invaded Java the squadron retired to the south of the island and then to Australia, where it disbanded on 31 March 1942. Reformed in Ceylon on 23 July 1942, the squadron's Catalinas flew anti-submarine and air-sea rescue patrols out of Koggala for the remainder of the war.

Cold War

No. 205 Squadron continued Catalina operations from its base at Koggala until 1949, when it was re-equipped with Sunderland Vs and returned to Seletar, Singapore. During 1950 and 1951, a detachment was based at Iwakuni in Japan, carrying out patrols along the Korean coast. Detachments were also based at RAF Trincomalee, RAF Kai Tak and RAF Changi. Squadron Headquarters was moved to Changi in March 1959, leaving a detachment of Sunderlands at Seletar. The unit then began converting to land-based maritime patrol operations, equipped with Avro Shackletons. On 15 May 1959 the squadron flew the RAF's last Sunderland operation out of RAF Seletar, Singapore. No. 205 Squadron continued Shackleton patrols until it disbanded on 31 October 1971.

Aircraft operated

See also

• List of Royal Air Force aircraft squadrons
• Cathay Pacific VR-HEU

References

Notes

1. ^ Moyes 1976, pp. 192–193.
2. ^ Rawlings 1982, pp. 134–136.
3. ^ Halley 1988, pp. 265–266.
4. Bowyer and Rawlings 1979, p. 13.
5. Bowyer and Rawlings 1979, p. 42.
6. Flintham and Thomas 2003, p. 73.
7. ^ Jefford 2001, p. 71.
8. Shores, Franks & Guest 1990, p. 140

Bibliography

• Bowyer, Michael J.F. and John D.R. Rawlings. Squadron Codes, 1937–56. Cambridge, UK: Patrick Stephens Ltd., 1979. ISBN 0-85059-364-6.
• Flintham, Vic and Andrew Thomas. Combat Codes: A full explanation and listing of British, Commonwealth and Allied air force unit codes since 1938. Shrewsbury, Shropshire, UK: Airlife Publishing Ltd., 2003. ISBN 1-84037-281-8.
• Halley, James J. The Squadrons of the Royal Air Force & Commonwealth 1918–1988. Tonbridge, Kent, UK: Air Britain (Historians) Ltd., 1988. ISBN 0-85130-164-9.
• Jefford, C.G. RAF Squadrons, a Comprehensive record of the Movement and Equipment of all RAF Squadrons and their Antecedents since 1912. Shrewsbury, Shropshire, UK: Airlife Publishing, 1988 (second edition 2001). ISBN 1-85310-053-6.
• Moyes, Philip J.R. Bomber Squadrons of the RAF and their Aircraft. London: Macdonald and Jane's (Publishers) Ltd., 2nd edition 1976. ISBN 0-354-01027-1.
• Rawlings, John D.R. Coastal, Support and Special Squadrons of the RAF and their Aircraft. London: Jane's Publishing Company Ltd., 1982. ISBN 0-7106-0187-5.
• Shores, Christopher F., Franks, Norman and Guest, Russell. Above the Trenches: A Complete Record of the Fighter Aces and Units of the British Empire Air Forces 1915–1920. Grub Street, 1990. ISBN 0-948817-19-4
• Smith, Colin. Singapore Burning. Penguin Books, 2005. ISBN 0-14-101036-3.

External links

• RAF Squadron history
• Air of Authority Squadron history
• Leslie Tomlin's War at RAF Koggala, Sri Lanka 1942-45

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Australian Flying Corps units attached to the RAF during the First World War	67 (1 Sqn AFC) 68 (2 Sqn AFC) 69 (3 Sqn AFC) 71 (4 Sqn AFC)
Article XV (Commonwealth) air force units attached to the RAF during the Second World War	Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) 400 401 402 403 404 405 406 407 408 409 410 411 412 413 414 415 416 417 418 419 420 421 422 423 424 425 426 427 428 429 430 431 432 433 434 435 436 437 438 439 440 441 442 443 Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) 450 451 452 453 454 455 456 457 458 459 460 461 462 463 464 466 467 Royal New Zealand Air Force (RNZAF) 485 486 487 488 489 490
squadrons formed from non-Commonwealth personnel during the Second World War	Argentine 164 Belgian 349 350 Czechoslovak 310 311 312 313 Dutch 320 (Netherlands) 321 (Netherlands) 322 (Dutch) French 326 327 328 329 340 341 342 343 344 345 346 347 Greek 13 335 336 Norwegian 330 331 332 333 334 Polish 300 301 302 303 304 305 306 307 308 309 315 316 317 318 663 United States 71 121 133 Yugoslav 351 352
Royal Auxiliary Air Force	Special Reserve 500 501 502 503 504 Auxiliary Air Force 600 601 602 603 604 605 606 607 608 609 610 611 612 613 614 615 616 622
Fleet Air Arm of the RAF (1924–1939)	712 715 718 800 801 802 803 810 811 812 813 814 820 821 822 823 824 825
Volunteer Gliding Squadrons (VGS)	current 611 615 621 622 626 631 632 637 644 645 661 former 612 613 614 616 617 618 623 624 625 633 634 635 636 642 643 662 663 664

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